Posted By: DIRadioCast On: September 23, 2013

Saturday, September 21, 2013, Brooklyn Rapper and Rap Is Outta Control host, Torae, took to the streets of New York to walk for sickle cell awareness. Just a few weeks ago, the Brooklyn Emcee claimed he didn’t know anyone with the illness but expressed his interest in supporting the #1ViralVoice campaign. After getting involved, he learned that a close friend, whom he had known for over 14 years, had lost her mother to the disease and she, too, carried the trait.

Sickle cell disease is a devastating hereditary condition that affects millions of people, particularly those in West and Central Africa, as well as people of African descent in the United States, Europe and South America. The disease involves normally round, soft red blood cells being deformed into rigid and sickle-shaped red blood cells. Sickle cell is marked by severe pain, life threatening infections and organ damage. There are several types of sickle cell disease. The most common are sickle cell anemia, sickle-hemoglobin C disease, sickle β0thalassemia and sickle β+ thalassemia. To find out more information on sickle cell, services or volunteer opportunities, please visit SCTPN.net

In 2012, the Sickle Cell Thalassemia Patients Network (“SCTPN”) media reached out to Torae to support the walk , however, due to prior commitments he was unable to support. They, again, reached out to him in the summer of 2013. As promised, he readily offered up his time, support and influence as a part of the #1ViralVoice campaign which included an #OnLive Google Hangout interview.

After reviewing the #OnLive interview with Torae, SCTPN asked him to be Grand Marshal of their 15th Annual Sickle Cell Walk in New York City. His participation inspired a great deal of virtual support and assisted in creating a conversation around health, wellness and the severity of sickle cell.

#1ViralVoice

#1ViralVoice is a new media campaign created to reach people on all social platforms, using the hashtag #1ViralVoice to bring attention to health issues that are prevalent in the Afro American & Caribbean Communities the world over. We ( DistinctiveImpression MMG, LLC) have been working with SCTPN over the past 22 month, developing this campaign using sickle cell as the focal point. Our main objective is to have open conversations about health and mental health, while providing resources to facilitate preventive lifestyle changes to increase healthier communities. Join us in speaking volumes for a healthy tomorrow via #1ViralVoice . September is Sickle Cell Awareness Month make a contribution. SCTPN.net